How to Make the Bank Prove It Owns Your Loan in a New York Foreclosure

If a foreclosure has been filed against you, the company suing is not automatically entitled to win just because it says it owns your loan. Under New York law it has to actually prove that — and there is a real, structured way for a homeowner to demand that proof rather than take it on faith.

What 'proving it owns your loan' actually means

In legal terms this is the question of standing: the plaintiff must have been the owner or holder of your promissory note — the document you signed promising to repay — at the moment the foreclosure case was filed. Mortgages are bought, sold, and securitized many times, and the paperwork tracking those transfers does not always keep up. If the plaintiff did not actually hold the note when it sued, it lacked standing, and that is a real defense. See our companion guide on standing to foreclose in New York for the full legal background.

Step 1 — demand the note and the chain of title

Start by requesting the original promissory note and documentation of the chain of title — every assignment that supposedly transferred your loan from the original lender to whoever is suing you now. You can request this informally from the plaintiff's counsel, and later formally through discovery (Step 4). Compare the dates and parties in that chain against the complaint's own allegations.

Step 2 — check whether the note was properly presented with the complaint (CPLR 3012-b)

New York's CPLR 3012-b requires the foreclosing plaintiff's attorney to file a certificate of merit confirming they personally reviewed the note, the mortgage, and the other loan documents and have a reasonable basis to believe the plaintiff has standing and the complaint is accurate. As a matter of practice, plaintiffs typically also attach a copy of the note as an exhibit to the complaint. Pull the court file and check two things yourself: was the certificate of merit filed, and does the note attached (if any) actually match your loan, with an endorsement chain that supports the plaintiff's claim to own it?

Step 3 — raise lack of standing as a defense

You generally raise lack of standing as an affirmative defense in your Answer, or in a pre-answer motion to dismiss. For a residential home loan, RPAPL § 1302-a provides that a standing defense is not waived merely because a homeowner failed to raise it in a timely answer or pre-answer motion. That is helpful information if you are past your original answer deadline, but it is not a guarantee of any particular result in your case — raise the defense as early as you are able to.

Step 4 — use discovery to compel production

Once lack of standing is part of the case, New York's CPLR discovery rules let you formally demand the documents the plaintiff has been relying on: the original note, the complete assignment history, and records showing who held the note on the filing date. A notice for discovery and inspection, interrogatories, or a deposition can all be used to force production. If the plaintiff cannot produce what its own complaint and certificate of merit claim it reviewed, that gap is exactly what a standing challenge is built on.

Putting the sequence together

1. Request the original note and proof of the chain of title.
2. Check the court file for the CPLR 3012-b certificate of merit and whether a matching note was attached to the complaint.
3. Raise lack of standing as a defense in your Answer (or pre-answer motion).
4. Use CPLR discovery to compel the plaintiff to produce the note and assignment history.